Leave Him
by PiepsiPiper
Summary: AU where Daryl meets Carol at the victim center and convinces her to leave Ed. Will continue if I get enough responses c: Caryl fic, T for language so far. BEFORE YOU READ: NO! I did NOT research anything about the realistic aspects of abusive relationships, please respect I am fully aware romance is not why they leave as I have been raised in these types. This is for fun PURELY.
1. Leave Him

He stands in the shadows of the welcome hall and he's not sure why he's out here with the others. Why is he even at the stupid victim center in the first place? Is he honestly so weak his father's going to find him here? Oh, shit, WAIT, that's right, he's been here for years being nobody, being nothing. He's been here since he was a little boy and his older brother had finally dragged him from his home and dumped his ass there so he could go light up on ecstasy and fuck himself up on LSD or what the fuck ever.

Ah, whatever. He can't find any means to care anymore. Anyway, he's been here so long now the staff was making him volunteer helping out, and while he was still a hermit, he was gradually coming out of his shell with the praise they were giving him, but barely. It didn't seem his true self would ever be revealed at this point; the staff had given up trying to deal him through therapy for it years ago because he just got upset and left.

Until he met her.

This beauty, her hair graying from the stress of abuse, with a young girl clinging to her and chewing the back of her thumb anxiously, blonde hair and so innocent. Daryl was being forced to introduce the newcomers to the facilities and check them in. He tried not to keep stealing glances, feeling like a child, trying to ward off the blush beginning to creep onto his face. He cleared his throat, attempting to ask in a gruff voice, "Names?"

The woman shuffled forward nervously. She had nice curves, he had to admit, and he had never been with a woman but it didn't stop him from looking. Come to think of it, he couldn't say he had ever been attracted to anyone like he felt right now, like a moth to a flame. She was jumpy, and she eyed him suspiciously being he was a grown man in a shelter clearly stuck there, and he raised his eyebrows, nodding his head, trying to encourage her with an awkward, "Mm-mm?"

She started, looking down, saying in a voice of silk and an underlying streak of fear, "C-Carol P-Peletier... and Sophia Peletier..."

Daryl nodded, scribbling the names on the form before gruffly saying, "Reason for housing, anyone to look out for?"

"Um... My husband, Ed... Peletier..."

No surprise. But at the same time, it wasn't every day in this housing a woman with a kid came in, so he was naturally drawn, hopping from the chair and bundling up a bunch of supplies. "C'mon."

She didn't move.

He was halfway down the hall when he stopped and turned around. He squinted at her, scowling a little crankily, before relaxing a bit, forcing himself to loosen up. He sympathized with what these people went through on some level. He sighed, saying softly, "I'll show you around and help you get settled...?"

"Oh... Right." She looked a little flustered and took Sophia's hand, who looked terrified and shied closer to her mother, but at her reassuring words the little girl followed. He showed her around to the cafeteria and introduced her to some of the staff members before ambling through the halls to find the spare room listed on the sheet.

He opened the door for her, gesturing for her to go inside before following after. He couldn't take his eyes off of her, for some reason he felt compelled not to look away but he didn't want to intimidate her. He tore his eyes away, clearing his throat again and sniffing, unrolling the blankets and laying them on each bunk. He set up other basic supplies, handing her toothpaste and toothbrushes and other necessities. He tried to smile just a little to be polite; why was he trying so hard.

"You need anythin' else?"

"I think I'm okay," she said quietly, before smiling gratefully, "...Thank you."

"Mm."

He felt like he had overstayed his welcome, glancing at the little girl, before suddenly starting, saying, "...Oh, hey..." He reached into his bag, pulling out a doll they put in each pack in the case a child did come in, stepping toward her. Sophia shrank a bit but he extended the doll toward her, crouching to her level, smiling. "Hey... Here's for being so brave. I know what it's like."

His heart was in his throat and he didn't know why he was acting so open. Maybe it was the kid. Nevertheless, he felt his heart burst when the girl gave a little squeak and took the doll, hugging it to her chest, whispering, "Thank you."

He nodded, standing and turning to head out the door. He tied up the bag and began to make his way down the hall when he heard someone following him. "Sir...?"

He turned around at Carol's voice, trying to look agitated, growling, "Daryl. What is it?"

He remembered himself after she jumped a little at his tone and muttered an apology. She looked a little shaken, and he waited patiently by staring her down until she finally whispered, "Do you have any books?"

Daryl's face contorted into surprise, unable to hide it, a little taken aback, echoing uncertainly, "Books?"

She nodded slowly, looking more nervous by the second as if she had asked the wrong question. "Yes?"

Daryl shuffled, before beckoning her, leading her to the storage room and unlocking the door, holding it open for her. "Take your pick. I dunno what we got. Choose one."

Carol looked around, and he noticed she began to tap a finger against her lip thoughtfully, before picking up a book from on the the boxes, holding it tightly to her chest. Daryl leaned against the wall on his heels, and Carol slowly turned back to him, smiling gratefully. "Th-thank you."

"Mhm," he replied, eyeing the back of the book. Treating Survivors of Childhood Abuse. He frowned a little. "Hey... Don't tell me he..."

Carol flinched a bit and he gritted his teeth, knowing not to press any further. She murmured another thank you before scurrying out of the room like a mouse and he looked down at his shoes. Fuck.

At dinner, he spotted her by herself and came to settle across from her, offering Sophia his cookie, which she took and began to nibble on gratefully, smiling faintly. "I'd like to have kids someday," he said softly, before snapping out of it, beginning to pick up his food with his fingers. "Sorry about earlier."

He expected her to ignore him, so he was entirely puzzled when he heard her snort and begin to laugh. He looked up, frowning in confusion. "Didn't anyone ever teach to eat with silverware?" she laughed, and he felt himself very pleased he had made that delightful, heavenly sound possible.

"You're crazy! Silverware is for losers," Daryl shot back, smirking devilishly and she laughed again, nodding acceptingly, and for once, he felt like he fit in at the shelter, continuing to eat his food with them in silence that was now more comfortable, beginning small conversation with her.

"What's your name, Daryl?"

"Dixon."

"Really?"

Daryl froze, his eyes becoming a little nervous himself, glancing at her. "W-why, do you know... one of them...?" he choked out, biting his lip.

Carol shook her head, replying, "Just a nice name."

Daryl frowned but relaxed, not saying anything more on it so they dropped the subject. They discussed their ltheir interests, hobbies, small talk that all seemed to make sense when making friends. He thought maybe, just maybe, he had found someone that might actually make him enjoy it around the housing.

He bid her goodnight when it was time for everyone to go to their rooms, clambering onto his bottom bunk and sprawling out, staring at the ceiling for a while before drifting off to sleep. He had this crazy dream, a dream he couldn't comprehend yet, that Carol might be the girl he finally wines and dines, warms her bed and gets a job to support. Actually, he thought it might be the best dream he's had in ages, and he feels refreshed when he wakes up in the morning.

When he arrived in her room though to say good morning, he noticed her packing up what little she had brought and Sophia huddling in the corner of the bunk bed, looking unhappy. "What're you doing?"

Carol jumped, looking up at him, chewing her lip, before looking down again. The shirt she was wearing made the bruises and the abrasions on her arms alone obvious. She glanced at Sophia, looking like she wanted to cry before murmuring shakily, "I'm going b-back to Ed..."

"Why the fuck would you want to do that?" He forgot to watch his language around the kid. Carol flinched, looking fearful and he realized a growl had inched into his tone. He pursed his lips before saying slowly, "Look... I was abused as a kid. If you take her back there, she's going to get hurt... Lookit her, she's so innocent. You wanna ruin that?"

Carol fell silent, looking down and fidgeting with her hands. She shrugged a little and he knew somewhere in his head she wanted to say that her little girl had already been ruined by what she had seen.

"You wanna go back and get beaten til your skin is black? Hit with a belt til he gives you a little mercy, please him so he don't touch her?" Daryl's tone had become steel, and she seemed to realize he was speaking partly from his own experience by his voice, which belatedly he realized had cracked a little. "You're better than that. You're not nothing without him. You could do so much better... You could live so much better. You could be safe here."

Carol was beginning to look conflicted but at the same time terrified, murmuring, "What if he finds me?"

Daryl stepped forward, chancing to touch her arm just once awkwardly before straightening, his eyes blazing with determination. "I'll protect you."

"You don't know what he's-"

"Don't even dare."

She fell silent again and turned to him. Now she just looked pleading and desperate for approval like he had so many times over and somewhere in him he just wanted to take her in his arms. He chewed his lip before shuffling forward until there was less than an arm's length between them, taking a leap out of his comfort zone, saying confidently, "Leave him."

"...Why protect me, though?"

"Because you're every bit as good as them, as us. Every bit."


	2. Moving In, Moving On

AN: Leave a comment if you want this to be a multi-chapter! I will only do so if I gain enough comments. C: also, leave me your prompts in the ask box! I will take prompts from detailed to words to quotes- whatever your heart desires. I will post periodically in the Caryl tag.

He sat the moving boxes down in the new apartment with what little they had and straightened. It had been a few weeks since Daryl had convinced her to leave Ed, and he had immediately begun to see a transformation. The skittish woman that had come in not too long ago was already beginning to be a confident adult. She was still rather paranoid around men... except him. After a while, he had been surprised when she had boldly asked him out after he had helped her fill out divorce papers with the staff.

He had accepted, of course, and helped her find her own place, deciding it was time for him to try to get out into the real world after being crammed in the housing for so long. He wasn't surprised the staff were overjoyed to see him go, but he promised to return for volunteer work, strangely not feeling so crabby about it anymore. Maybe he was changing, too. Maybe she was changing him. He had finally made a new start and accepted a job to train for law enforcement, and she had started looking. The temporary housing had graciously given her money for new clothes for any interviews she might have, and supplied her with regular clothes.

He didn't want to admit it, but the thought of being out on his own excited him endlessly. There were so many possibilities. Carol was still afraid Ed would find her, but he promised to keep her safe. He would, he was sure of it. Carol told him a little bit of her past and Sophia's difficult birth, but he didn't push her to tell anything; he knew she needed to time to let things come out one by one. He was hanging up one of the pictures of him and his brother in the room they were going to share- since a two-bedroom was all they could afford and Sophia, though very young, didn't seem very adamant about sharing though she was very meek. But Carol was a good mother and had asked her if she wanted to share or not, so she had went ahead and said no.

He heard her coming in and turned his head just a little before saying steadily, "Hey."

"Hey," Carol replied softly, folding clothes and putting them away in the dresser. She hummed softly and Daryl went back to focusing on settling the frame on the nail, not noticing her come up behind him.

He jumped when she suddenly spoke up from right behind him, turning his head to stare at her with large, round eyes. "That your brother?"

Daryl relaxed after a moment, brushing it off and stepping back, crossing his arms and viewing the picture with her. After a long moment, he replied, "Yeah, that's him."

"He never visits?"

Daryl hesitated, his face visibly dropping and turned back to the box, only responding, "Mm," at first. He began hammering another nail into the wall, before saying steadily in a soft voice when she began to turn away, "He's dead." A look of realization dawned on her face and she started to apologize, to sympathize, when he cut her off, "Don't. I'm not fool enough to believe there were any flowers blooming for him. He was five years older than me, and Daddy beat him too, but he never knew Daddy beat me. I traveled around with him for a while before he dropped me off at the shelter after he made me run away with him when he came back from juvenile... er, whatever." He took a breath, hanging the picture and then wiping his face with his sleeve. "He was a drug addict and heavily involved in drug cartels. All sorts of bad stuff, he was always a bad kid. We were both bad eggs, I guess. He overdosed last year."

Carol looked horrified and speechless at the same time, but after a long moment walked over to him, leaning up to kiss his cheek. Daryl flinched a little reflexively, slowly lowering his arms after a moment though, but still looking bewildered at the affection. She smiled at him sadly, knowing he must not have ever received such tenderness, whispering, "That must have been hard... You deserve everything nobody ever gave you."

Daryl shrugged his shoulders a little, looking down, unsure of what to say. He blushed a bit in the end though, shuffling his feet, saying somberly, "I miss him a little... he was the only one I ever knew to follow. I was a little lost for a while." He shrugged again, though, feeling as if he had said too much and pushing past her then, stuffing the red rag back in his pocket, saying, "This is a nice place."

Carol nodded in agreement, respecting his wish to drop the subject and coming over to help him put the clothes away. Their hands accidentally touched and he blushed. Their time together hadn't exactly been intimate; they both needed time to work on it, but he had successfully wined and dined her courtesy of the temporary housing as celebration for the fact they were leaving. The housing had given a restriction order to Ed, who appeared to have grudgingly accepted due to not wanting charges, although in court at first he had grabbed for Carol's wrist and tried to press her into coming home, when Daryl had almost popped a vein and slugged his lights out in the middle of the courtroom. He didn't, but had gotten close enough to the point he had to be held back.

They both stiffened when a little, shy voice squeaked, "Mama?"

Carol looked over her shoulder, glancing at Daryl. "Yes, sweetie?"

"Can you help me put on my bed sheets?" She glanced at Daryl nervously; she was still a little terrified of him but didn't say anything of it, but as a young girl at the same time, she was still warming up fairly quick. She waved at him a little but and he waved back before Carol just smiled politely and came over to her, ruffling her hair and walking off with her down the hall.

* * *

><p>Later that evening, he had just flopped down into bed beside her, staring up at the ceiling thoughtfully. He curled his knees up habitually, and they both stared at the ceiling in silence for several long moments, before she spoke up, "Thank you for everything."<p>

"Mm, it was no trouble," Daryl responded immediately without hesitation, rubbing one eye and shielding a yawn, before looking over at her after a long moment. "Sophia like her room?"

Carol smiled softly, drumming her fingers on her stomach, nodding. "Yes." She paused, seeming to contemplate, before suddenly asking him, "Daryl, why did you choose me?"

"Hmm?"

"The girls that have been there for a long time, and the staff, they were always practically throwing themselves at you. Why didn't you date any of them?"

Daryl blushed a little, looking away to hide it, and heard her muffle a giggle, before he sighed and scratched his head, honestly responding, "I didn't really notice..." He shrugged a little. "I'm not really good at that kind of stuff... I'm still not. But..." He licked his lips, looking down before continuing, "I don't know. You're different than the others. You have such strength in you... You could be such a powerful woman. Maybe you'll run a business someday."

She laughed, covering her mouth with her hand, giggling, "As if! I don't think we should go chasing dreams yet, Daryl. Let's see if I get a job as a clerk right now."

Daryl smirked a little, saying smugly, "Hey, it could happen. One day I'm gonna say I told you so, and you're gonna be so mad you didn't believe me, the redneck asshole."

They looked at each other, locked eyes, and immediately burst into laughter, lasting for several minutes before it calmed into chuckles and giggles. Carol shook her head, saying softly, "You are a silly man."

Daryl snorted, looking up at the ceiling again, replying, "Keep telling yourself that."

They went silent for a little while longer, and he felt her gaze on him. He looked over when he saw her move, watching her move her arm to rest between them, her palm reaching out to him. He hesitated, then calmed himself, smiling just faintly, taking her hand and brushing the pad of his thumb over the back of her hand. He lifted it slowly, kissing the tender skin, meeting her eyes. In a sudden bold move she didn't expect from a man socially awkward and struggling to adapt to a romantic relationship, he pulled her in, moving his arm to be around her shoulders, letting her cuddle into him.

She paused, and he tensed with fear that he had done the wrong thing before she just closed her eyes and nestled into his warmth. In her own bold move, despite her abuse he found there was so much trust in this woman, settling her chin on his chest. He forced himself not to tense and finally exhaled, finding he was enjoying the closeness. He turned his head, returning her earlier gesture by kissing her temple.

"Thank you," Carol murmured, tiredly curling her fingers in his shirt, "...Leaving wasn't such a bad idea after all."

"Mhm," Daryl said softly, not wanting to interrupt the tender, comfortable situation. He stroked his thumb along her hand until she fell asleep, smiling softly.

Not so bad at all.

* * *

><p>In the morning, he was woken by a phone call. She stirred, tensing up a little before relaxing, letting him reach over and grab the phone, allowing herself to doze, pressing her cheek against his chest.<p>

"Hello?" he muttered drowsily, rubbing one eye. He went silent then, and she looked up at him, frowning a bit.

Eventually, he said, "Alright. Thanks," and hung up. He put the phone down and was silent for a long moment before saying, "The shelter called."

"And?" She started to sit up a little, and he released her a little reluctantly, avoiding her gaze a little nervously.

"Ed died in a car accident yesterday."


End file.
